To Be Human
by Coke head
Summary: When Jirou is haunted by an ayakashi, her life goes up and down so quickly, her head spins. She learns a great deal from this ayakashi, but most importantly, she begins to understand the demon that once was and always will be human. Kaguro x OC
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

"_In the country the darkness of night is friendly and familiar, but in a city, with its blaze of lights, it is unnatural, hostile and menacing. It is like a monstrous vulture that hovers, biding its time."-_W. Somerset Maugham

Jirou paced quickly down the sidewalk with her bokken strapped across her back. She hated walking back home after practice at the dojo because she always felt vulnerable in the dark. Even though there were still people out in the streets at this time, she feared the suburbs where the streets are deserted and there are fewer street lights.

She adjusted her backpack on her shoulder, which held her kenjutsu uniform. After class, she would put back on her blue and white school uniform, but today, she had to wear last year's uniform to school and to practice because she forgot to do the laundry. She had grown out of it by far, and she feared the buttons would snap and fly off. Jirou had more emphasis in her figure than all the other girls at school. She didn't quite hate it; she hated everyone's reaction to seeing her. She didn't want the extra attention tonight. She wanted to be inconspicuous walking back home. Jirou hated standing out.

At the crosswalk, Jirou waited with several other people for the _Walk_ sign to flash. She felt safe being surrounded by seemingly nice people. She tried to ignore the stares but when the women peered down their noses at her, she felt really embarrassed to even be alive. Men can be bearable, but when envying women look at you, or even the old school women who think small is better and big is well… sinful, it gets internally insufferable. Jirou couldn't stand that, especially when she does nothing wrong to deserve such names that girls call her at school.

The _Walk_ sign flashed and Jirou stared forward as she walked along. Across the way there was a moderately large group of people at the street corner, about half of them actually stepping off the sidewalk to cross the street. Among them was a tall figure in a black and red kimono, wrapped like a mummy.

Jirou locked her stare on him; he was so out of the ordinary. She couldn't look away, and she slowed down to take in what she was seeing. Everyone else was oblivious to the freak walking amongst them.

As she got closer, she saw his large yellow eyes with red irises, like an owl's eyes before it grabbed its prey. Why couldn't she stop staring? It was so impolite, but something had control over her.

He stopped in the middle of the street when he noticed her staring at him. She stopped suddenly and gasped as she found herself nearly an arm's length in front of her. He had a surprised expression on his face, his mouth slightly open in contemplation. He smelled of burnt flesh, which made Jirou's nose wrinkle.

Everyone passed by around them and the _Walk_ sign was about to flash _Don't Walk_. Jirou couldn't look away. It was like an accident you can't stop watching. And now that their eyes were locked, she felt like the one who was the victim in the accident.

"Hey, girl! You better get moving unless you want to get killed!" grunted a man who nudged her arm.

She glanced over to see the man urging her to cross and then switched back to find that the mummy was gone. Jirou was surprised, but she quickly ran across the street to keep from being more surprised when she became road kill. When she got to the other side, she looked around to see where the mummy had gone but he had indeed disappeared.

"Hey, did you lose something?" the same man asked her. He seemed awfully concerned for a stranger like her.

"No, I thought I saw something," she said softly, still trying to find the mummy. She turned to the man, giving up on finding what was probably a figment of her imagination. "Thank you for your help," she bowed.

"No problem," he bowed before walking down the sidewalk. She waited until he was well down the street before going the opposite way towards the suburbs.

Jirou's mind went back to the crosswalk and how macabre that figure was. Did it really happen? Was she seeing things? If it did really happen, then what was that? She had heard of ghosts and stuff, and things called ayakashi that were a different thing entirely. People at school say that ayakashi eat human beings and live in the forest near the town. Was that thing a ghost or an ayakashi? It wasn't transparent, so it probably wasn't a ghost. But Jirou didn't know what an ayakashi looked like, so she ended up stumped on the matter. She half-wished that the mummy was still around so she could find out for herself.

She reached her neighborhood with its quiet streets and tall walls. She hated walking around here during the night. She didn't know anyone who seemed sketchy in the neighborhood but you never knew who might be lurking in the shadows.

Jirou strode close to the walls, reaching up occasionally to make sure her bokken was still there. She listened carefully for any sound of someone nearby but the streets were dead silent and the houses seemed empty. A dog barked in the distance, receiving an answer from another dog. It wasn't like an intruder alert howl, more like is anyone out there sort of howl. Jirou let out a sigh of relief, feeling a bit more secure knowing she was alone.

She crossed the street and took the path down an alley that took her straight to her street. She noticed it was darker there than yesterday, and it unsettled her. The streetlight in the alley must have died or busted the bulb, she heard glass crunch under her feet as she entered the dark domain.

There was a low pitch growl behind her. It wasn't like a dog's, it was human. Before she could turn around and draw her bokken, her attacker had her slammed up against the wall, their clawed hands grasped elegantly at her throat so she could breathe. Whatever it was, it wasn't human. To come out of nowhere and quickly take her from the middle of the alley to the wall several feet away without her even feeling the distance, it couldn't be human.

As soon as the surprise and blurriness went away, the big yellow eyes glared back at her menacingly. They were all she could see in total darkness, but it was more than enough to know who her attacker was.

"How can you see me?" he asked her angrily.

"I don't know," she said, trying to keep her cool. In situations like these, it was best not to lose your head.

"Are you a caster? Have you ever seen things before? Odd things…" he began to calm down by a huge amount.

"No, I have no idea. I had never seen anything like you before," she replied.

"Then you have the Sight," he relaxed his hands a little and began to talk to himself, "But still, I cloaked myself enough so that even a human with the Sight couldn't see me. Only a caster can see through that illusion." He took one hand off her neck and stroked his jaw line as he pondered. "You must have caster relations. What about your parents?"

"I doubt it," she said.

He replaced his hand over her neck and pushed up against her body. "What is your name, girl?" he asked.

"Jirou Takagawa," she breathed. She didn't like how he pushed up against her like this.

"A boy's name, huh? Interesting. Second son. Pretty girl with daddy problems?" he neared her face, his lips curling, baring his sharp teeth.

She glowered at him. He hit home run alright. "Just what are you anyway? Who are you?"

"I'm Kaguro, you're worst nightmare!" he pushed her into the wall with his own body and grinned.

"There have been worst things that lived under my bed," she stared at him, un-amused.

An expression of shock crossed his face. She could see clearly his failure at intimidation was a huge let down. His grin disappeared and his eyes seemed to dim like headlights. Did he get off by scaring people?

"Really, you're not so scary," she told him seriously.

He withdrew a hand and leveled it with his waist like a waiting uppercut. A sword blade shot out of the palm of his hand. Jirou gasped in surprise and fear. He was really going to hurt her. He thrust it at Jirou's chest and she winced from the oncoming impalement.

The blade stopped just inches from her chest. His hand released her throat and retreated to the wall where he leaned up against it, watching the blade shake furiously. Jirou opened her eyes to see him standing before her, unable to kill her.

"Why?" he whispered. Angrily, he withdrew his hand and attempted to stab at her again, but it also stopped just inches away, as if there were forces protecting her like a shield and holding the sword back simultaneously. "Why!" he yelled.

He stepped back and glared at her, the sword slipping back up into his hand. She pressed her back up against the wall for support, wishing it would suck her up and make her disappear from his sight. It wouldn't make a difference, he couldn't kill her.

"You must be a caster, I know it. My blade can cut down anything in my path, but for some reason, I can't even touch you with my blade," he told her. With a quick movement of his hand, the trash can next to her was split in half, all of its garbage spilling out. He came up to her again and took her chin in his hand. "Let this be a warning to you girl, as soon as your guard is down, I will kill you."

He saw something in her eyes. It was something like fear, but also sternness. She was afraid of him, but she seemed determined. He liked that. Everyone else he had killed had only shown fear in their faces. She was willing to take his crap even longer, determined to duke it out and fight for her life.

"What is your problem?" she asked lowly, staring back at him.

His lips curled into a small smile which drove Jirou crazy, like a little kid sitting on top of you with a baseball bat and that cocky grin on his face. Kaguro stepped back and in a flash, he was gone.

"Jerk," Jirou kicked the ground and gathered herself before running home as fast as she could.


	2. Chapter 2

**Here it is! Sorry about the delay.**

Chapter 2

"_Children begin by loving their parents; after a time they judge them; rarely, if ever, do they forgive them.__"-_Oscar Wilde

She was filled with relief as soon as she entered the door. Nowhere else felt more safe than home. She kicked her shoes off and tossed her bag in the corner. She pulled an elastic band from her wrist and pulled up her medium-length brown hair before continuing into the hall. Jirou heard her father coming down the stairs and she went to greet him.

"Jirou! What took you? You were supposed to be home thirty minutes ago!" he exclaimed as he came down. She could sense anger in his tone.

"Just traffic, father," she lied, "Have you eaten yet? I can get dinner ready," she perked up at the thought. She loved cooking, especially for her father.

"Oh, I had some takeout already. You should have called if you were going to be late," her father said when he came up to her. She tried to hide her shame. Takeshi Takagawa was tall with a regular build, but a particularly round face which got red when he was angry. His short black hair was turning gray and he was beginning to get a gut from all the good food Jirou had learned to cook.

"I'm sorry! I didn't know," Jirou bowed apologetically.

"It's excusable. There are some leftovers in the fridge. After you eat, I want you to work on your homework," he told her.

"Of course, father," she said before he turned and headed back up to his room.

Jirou heated up her food and brought it up to her room. She was surprised she didn't get scolded even more for whatever reason her father didn't see fit. Luckily, she didn't have any homework to do; she had done it during break at practice. As Jirou ate her noodles in the takeout box, she gazed at the book shelf in her room by her door. There she had her mother's books and some random things she thought were interesting that had belonged to her mother. On one of the shelves was a velvet jewelry case in which Jirou had found a cute charm necklace that she has worn everyday since she found it in her mother's stuff. She pulled the necklace out from underneath her shirt to look at it. The necklace was a silver chain that held a piece of jade with weird carvings like an Egyptian cartouche. She wasn't sure what it was for, but her mother wore it all the time in photos Jirou had seen.

When Jirou was done eating, she pulled out one of her mother's books and began to flip through it. It had no title, and was bound by a black ribbon. Her mother's name was on the first page and the book was handwritten. Could it have been her mother's journal?

Jirou quickly put the book down and ran downstairs to grab a drink Her father didn't allow pop or any caffeinated drinks in the household, so all there was to drink was water, milk, or green tea. She heated up a cup of milk and brought it up to her room. She was excited to read something her mother had wrote but she needed something to calm her nerves on the way. She opened the book back up and began to read.

_I met with Heisuke Matsudo today to further my studies. He is a very funny little man. I was frustrated because I felt that he wasn't teaching me anything, but later that night I found that I had actually learned a lot more than I thought I did._

Was her mother still a college student when she wrote this? No, the date was only 18 years ago, a year before Jirou was born. Then who was Heisuke Matsudo?

_Heisuke taught me a new protection charm today. Ever since I got attacked in the forest, I've felt that all the protection charms I had were insufficient. He also mentioned there is a charm to protect against S-Class ayakashi as well, but he didn't think I was ready to learn it._

Jirou's eyes widened when she read the word. Ayakashi? So they are real and evidently, one had attacked her mother, and she survived. She skimmed a couple pages excitedly.

_I've become better at casting spells to protect myself and to inflict pain to the ayakashi. Heisuke was very pleased with my progress. I was glad I practiced in the forest again on the smaller ayakashi. I believe I killed a couple the other night, but I can't be sure. When I heard the growling, I ran as quickly as I could back home where my husband scolded me for casting again. Heisuke is helping me make the S-Class protection charm. I had to do a couple of jobs for the ladies down the street to earn the money, but I was able to buy the jade piece to make the charm. _

A jade piece? Could it be…?

_Heisuke instructed me to bury the jade for a whole lunar cycle so I planted a rose bush beside it, not only to mark where I had buried it, but also to make an excuse as to use the shovel._

Jirou forwarded to the next month's entry anxiously.

_We performed the ritual today. It was ghastly. In order to make the charm impenetrable to S-Class ayakashi, you must bind an S-Class ayakashi to the charm by killing it with the charm. Heisuke carried out the deed, as I still have a heart for such creatures. The sacrifice is necessary, as it makes the charm like a repellant, or as Heisuke said the pole of a magnet. It will repel other S-Class ayakashi, and all ayakashi types under that._

Underneath the paragraph was a rough sketch of the charm, which looked just like the one Jirou wore. She stared blankly at the page in amazement. If the charm protects against S-Class ayakashi, and Kaguro was an ayakashi, then that's why he couldn't kill her! The protection charm didn't totally protect against them, since he could touch her and push her, but if a sword is drawn, then the charm kicks in.

She pulled out her school laptop and uploaded the search engine. She hurriedly typed in Heisuke Matsudo and pressed enter. The results loaded onto the screen and Jirou understood then, who her mother was that her father never told her about. Heisuke was an occult enthusiast, specifically in the ayakashi field of studies. He didn't live too far away either. She wrote down his address and thought of a million questions to ask him, not only about her mother, but about ayakashi, and Kaguro.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

"_Curiosity is one of the forms of feminine bravery.__"_ -Victor Hugo

The next day, on the way to school, Jirou thought of all the things she would ask Heisuke. She wondered what her mother was like, why she came to him to study ayakashi, and why she was so afraid of her own protection. She also wanted to ask why all of a sudden she is being targeted by an ayakashi.

She hugged close to the edge of the buildings as she walked down the sidewalk, steering clear of people's way. Today, she had her regular school uniform on that actually fits. It was a size bigger than her actual measurements, but only because it barely hid her breast size. She adjusted her blue sailor collar when she stopped at a street corner. She realized it was the same corner from last night, but she was on the opposite side.

It would be a couple days before she had a chance to pay a visit to Heisuke. She had to go to practice everyday after school and then for half a day on Saturday. Her only day off was Sunday, so she hoped he would be in then. She just hoped between now and then she wouldn't see Kaguro again.

Just as she thought about him, she peered into the crowd on the opposite side of the street. She scanned the faces and the tops of people's heads. No sign of him. She let out a sigh of relief. The sign signaled to walk and she followed the rest of the pedestrians across.

As the crowd got less dense on the way to school, and all the other businessmen took a different route to the bus station, Jirou noticed one businessman behind her. She figured maybe he worked somewhere near her school. She shrugged it off and didn't think about it. When she left the business sector and was nearing the outskirts of town, he was still following her. She didn't want to look back, it would seem like she was suspicious.

The railroad crossing bars came down as Jirou and the man came up to them. She took this opportunity to check her makeup and try to get a glimpse of the man behind her. As the train sped by in front of them, she brushed her hair from her eyes and tried to angle her small mirror to see the man. He had dark tousled hair and sunglasses. She saw he was wearing a suit but he didn't carry himself like a business man. He was rather goofy than formal, his hands shoved in his pants pockets and he leaned over like the delinquents that smoked outside the school all of the time.

The train sped away and the bars were raised up. Jirou crossed the tracks as she put her mirror away. Down the block, she turned the corner and headed to the school gate. She didn't hear footsteps behind her so she took the chance and looked back as soon as she was within school grounds. He wasn't there anymore. She relaxed and hurried to class, glad that the weird guy was gone.

When she settled down into her seat in her first period, all the girls began rushing into the hallway. Was it her? She knew they didn't like her, but they had never done that before. She decided to follow and see what was going on. Surely it couldn't have been her. A couple guys followed as well.

"See, there he is! Who do you think he is?" a girl asked out loud.

"Maybe he's a new teacher. You know Masashita-san had to go on maternity leave," another girl suggested.

"He's coming this way!" a girl pointed excitedly then hid her hand. Jirou pushed through and followed their gaze to the same man that was following her earlier, but his shades were in his suit pocket. He spotted her and grinned stupidly, making her feel uneasy. He barely had eyebrows, but they suited him. He had red eyes that studied everything he gazed upon. Who was he?

"He's really cute," another girl whispered.

"He's pretty cool too," a boy said.

When he passed by, Jirou got a whiff of his cologne. She felt dumbstruck for a moment as she watched him walk away down the hall. He must be a new teacher; he looked barely out of his twenties. He peered back over his shoulder and gave her a wicked grin. She froze.

"Wow," some of the girls gazed on in a stupor.

Jirou knew that grin. It all made sense now. But why did he look human?

"Jirou, where are you going!" one of the girls shouted when they noticed Jirou sprinting after the man.

As soon as she caught up to him, he turned around with his hands still in his pockets and that cocky grin on his face. He looked her over and the grin molded into a thin smile.

"You're wearing an outfit that fits this time," he commented, sending her into an internal fluster. She knew it was him, and he wanted her to know that right off the bat.

"Shut up, Kaguro," she growled, more angry that he could actually tell her clothes apart from the previous night.

"You must be mistaken. My name is Kuroda Genichiro," he told her with a malicious smile. "You better get back to class. I'll be seeing you around though, Jirou." He turned back and continued down the hall, waving back at her.

"Jerk," she huffed.

Thankfully, she didn't see him for the rest of the day but she heard about it from the other girls in school. Rumor spread about a cute guy that came that morning. There was a wide range of stories from a new teacher to a man in black alien agent. She had no idea what he thought he was doing stalking her at school and just wandering around wearing a disguise of some sort. Maybe he had some kind of curse that made him handsome during the day and ugly at night? Jirou laughed at the thought. But what good would that do? She still had a lot to learn about ayakashi, and time was running out if Kaguro was already following her around, waiting for that one moment when he could kill her. She was thankful for the protection charm.

After school, Jirou picked up her gear at home and headed for the dojo on the outside of town. She didn't run into Kaguro on the way, which lifted her hopes. Maybe she lost him? She knew it was only temporary. If he could find her so easily, he would soon find out where she lives. And with that look, he could get away with following her anywhere. She just hoped he didn't come to her home and hurt her father, who didn't believe in the spells that mother cast all the time. She needed to learn more spells from her mother's book in order to protect herself and her father.

The dojo was nestled two miles away from the city in a wide expanse of fields. It sat on the bank of a river, the only standing building in a small area of fallen, decaying structures. No one was quite sure why the dojo stood, or why the other buildings nearby were lying around, not even the dojo sensei. It seemed that they were ancient structures that have never been touched for some reason. The dojo had been rebuilt when the last sensei was in command, and it was rumored it had been destroyed three times before by severe storms and flooding.

Some of the boys were already gathered on the front porch, taking off their shoes and entering the dojo. Jirou took a deep breath and joined the group. As she waited in line, she could already feel the resentment radiating off of the other boys when they realized she was there. She was the only girl at the dojo, which naturally would cause the boys to go gaga. However, after she showed her true potential, they became jealous of her skill and technique and began to resent her. She hadn't grown used to that yet, even though it happens wherever she goes. Despite her skill, the sensei still hadn't promoted her to any position, she was still rated a newbie.

"Jirou!" a familiar voice called as she waited in line. She spun around and saw a boy running up the path to her, a huge dumb grin on his face. It was Renji Matsuda, possibly the only friend she had in this world, whom she was cautious of to consider anything more.

"Renji," she smiled as he caught up to her.

"Ready for today? I am! Maybe sensei will promote you today?"

She knew he wasn't mocking her, just encouraging her. "You ask me if I'm ready every day. And please, don't get my hopes up," she told him in a sad tone.

"Sorry, Jirou. It's just you're a really great wielder, you've beaten the seniors a couple times, and well, you've beaten me tons of times!" he grinned and scratched the back of his head. His grin was friendlier than Kaguro's, which was a breath of fresh air after last night's run in.

"Thanks Renji," Jirou smiled modestly.

When they had both took their shoes off and entered the dojo, Jirou went to the restroom to get dressed. The boys usually got dressed in the small locker room to the side, which was a new addition since the reconstruction. In the restroom, she quickly wrapped her chest in bandages, knocking herself down a bra size. She didn't like sparring in her uniform without cinching her chest, she felt they were in the way. She got dressed into her kenjutsu uniform and tucked her school clothes away into her bag. She joined Renji to sit along the line against the wall and waited for the dojo master to arrive.

A door on the other side of the room slid open and the master entered. Douji-sensei was a modern man that wanted to live in the Edo period of Japan, which is why he took it upon himself to instruct this dojo after the previous master retired. He was growing out his beard and taking rather good care of it compared to his balding head. Behind him was another man, which was a rare event to have a guest enter through the master's door.

As the man came into the light, Jirou noticed his tousled hair and pasty skin. Kaguro. He can follow her before she even arrives at her destination! He acted surprised to see her, or excited. She didn't want to think about it so she looked away from him towards the sensei.

"Students," Douji-sensei began as he sat down along the wall, opposite of all the curious faces, "we have an important guest today to observe your skills and assess your weaknesses. Please welcome Mr. Kuroda Genichiro!"

"Welcome!" all the students bowed. Jirou slowly bowed, peering up at Kaguro as she did. He gave a small bow to the students, but watched Jirou with a smile and his hands in his pockets.

"Kuroda-san, you may begin however you like," Douji-sensei told him calmly.

"Thank you sensei," Kaguro smiled kindly. He turned to face the students. "Alright, stand up!" he demanded.

They all quickly jumped to their feet by the change in his tone. Kaguro approached the beginning of the line and gazed over each student until he approached Jirou. He stopped and grinned. She wanted to kick him.

"Your name?" he asked her, towering over her. She almost wanted to tell him that he knew who she was, but he did this for fun so she had to play along.

"Jirou Takagawa," she answered, peering down. He walked down a bit further and came to another boy.

"And your name?"

"Tetsuya Ichigo, sir!" he answered. Jirou winced, feeling outdone.

Kaguro moved back towards the sensei's seat. "You two prepare to spar, I want a serious fight, but use your bokken."

She wondered what Kaguro was up to as she came back with her bokken. She waited in the center of the room as Tetsuya appeared with his bokken. She knew she would win this fight. Tetsuya was a little new, he has good precision but no skill and no technique. He has a tendency to try a series of systematic moves, and then when he sees he is losing, he lashes out to end it quick, which is his downfall.

"3…," Kaguro began to count down. Jirou steadied herself and readied her stance, her bokken raised to her eye level at one side of her head and her arm stretched out like a sight on a gun.

"2…" Tetsuya tried not to copy Jirou's stance.

"1… begin!" Kaguro shouted.

Jirou jumped forward poised to strike with her bokken. Tetsuya quickly evaded, but Jirou was swifter and swiped him at the side when she came near. He was already feeling pressured. He came forward and tried to strike, but she deflected the blow and overpowered him, pushing him back and causing him to stumble. She took this opportunity to end it quick as he almost regained his footing and struck his forearm, pushing him down on the ground.

"Stop! Good match, really quick." Kaguro came up to them. Jirou offered her hand to Tetsuya, who reluctantly took it. As a newbie, he wasn't like the others yet. He was only a sore loser.

"You did great, Tetsuya. Especially evading me at first and trying to strike me. Good work," Jirou smiled. She always tried to help the new guys.

Kaguro gazed on, contemplating with his mouth open slightly as he did before when he noticed Jirou had seen him.

"Thanks Jirou," Tetsuya forced a faint grin.

"Tetsuya, you can go and sit down now. That was good," Kaguro told him. Tetsuya bowed and joined the others. Kaguro turned to Jirou, still lost in contemplation as he gazed at her. She gave him a smug look before he turned away.

"Jirou, you're going to face me now," he told her. Her heart skipped a beat as he picked a bokken off the wall. Was he really going to fight her? He was going to try to kill her right here in the dojo. He doesn't play around after all. No, he wouldn't try to kill her in a public place. What was he planning?

Jirou steadied herself as Kaguro readied his bokken and grinned at her. He was playing around with her. She could see it in his eyes.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

"_To be nobody but yourself in a world which is doing its best, night and day, to make you everybody else means to fight the hardest battle which any human being can fight; and never stop fighting_," - e. e. cummings

In the blink of an eye, Kaguro came at her with his weapon raised above his head with one hand. His eyes were wild and red, like an animal. Jirou's heart almost stopped but as soon as he came down at her, a voice in her head told her to get out of the way. She rolled to the left and put up her guard as Kaguro twisted after her. They crossed swords, and Kaguro began to loosen up. Jirou fought back, keeping him off.

"You want to hear my assessment, Jirou?" Kaguro asked when his face came near to hers, his bokken forcing her onto her knees.

With a push against him, Jirou slid underneath him, between his legs and quickly turned to greet him with a strike. He deflected it and smiled when he returned the favor.

"You are either holding back, or your technique is unrefined," he squinted and moved his head slightly when she tried to smack his face with the sword.

"Don't get me wrong, you're pretty good. But you're hiding your true talent," Kaguro moved behind her to dodge another attack. He began to play evasively and didn't attack as much as he had when they started.

"Judging by what I have learned, you did not come here initially by choice. I mean, what kind of father would send his daughter to study the art of the sword?" With the bokken in one hand, he deflected Jirou's attacks like they were flies. "You are intimidated, insecure. You want to make him happy."

Jirou too, began to slow down as she tossed his words in her mind when he spoke. Yes, it was all true. How could he see through her so easily?

"But you aren't only studying to make him happy. This is all you have, you've taken a liking to it," he grinned proudly, knowing he was right when she came running at him again. He pushed her down with the bokken in one hand. She landed on her rear end but she quickly jumped back up to steady herself. "I can tell by your endearing encouragement to the other students," she gazed at her through slits. He ran at her and struck her in the leg and tried to strike her shoulder in a second attempt but she blocked him. "You tire too easily!" he shouted, bringing the bokken down on her. She rolled out of the way.

"Get up Jirou!" Renji cheered her on from the wall.

"Matsuda! Be quiet!" Douji-sensei snapped, pointing a long skinny finger at the boy.

"It's all right, sensei," Kaguro said kindly before turning back to Jirou who had stood herself up again. He narrowed his eyes at her and for a moment, she could imagine his huge yellow eyes glowering at her. "Now I'm sure of it. You're insecure and holding back."

He grabbed a katana off the wall and unsheathed it. All of the students and the sensei jumped up in alarm. Jirou dropped her bokken out of fear.

"Kuroda, don't!" Douji-sensei shouted, but to no avail.

Kaguro ran up to Jirou and slashed at her chest. He took a step back and tried to hide his grin. Jirou didn't feel anything at first, then her chest felt loose as if layers of skin were falling off of it. Even though she was afraid to look, she swallowed and looked down.

Her bandages slipped down her kenjutsu uniform, letting her breasts free from their tight bondage. He had made a simple cut across the top of her rib cage, which was enough to cut the bandages underneath and leave her skin unscathed. She looked up at him to find him staring with his mouth slightly open.

"You were holding back," he told her quietly, looking from them and then up into her eyes.

She wanted to call him a pervert, but she bit her tongue. He knew she was hiding that, but there was something else, something he was thinking about that caused him to do that.

Kaguro picked up another katana and underhand-tossed it towards her. She fumbled and drew it close to her chest, feeling naked that she was free.

"Come at me with a real sword, and no holding back," he told her, steadying his blade.

Jirou stood, frozen. Use a real sword? Was he crazy? What if she got hurt? No, she was wearing the charm, he couldn't hurt her. And she couldn't hurt him; he was an ayakashi after all. She unsheathed the katana and took a deep breath. She closed her eyes and focused as she steadied herself. She couldn't stumble. She couldn't tire. Everyone was watching her, or staring at her chest, she didn't want to truly know. In any case, she couldn't make a fool of herself using a real sword for the first time against a live opponent.

With her eyes closed, she sensed Kaguro coming at her, swinging his sword from underneath. Her eyes shot open as she met him face to face, metal clashing as her sword met his. He pushed harder, testing her. She brushed her sword along his until she reached the end where she pushed him back with a kick in the stomach as she twisted on her toes like a ballerina and when she turned back around, met the stunned Kaguro with another strike, but he was quick enough to guard. He pushed her sword away and tried to attack her shoulder but the charm deflected it. Jirou followed suit to try to make him not look bad and tried to strike his side. He sidestepped out of the way but grabbed her around the waist and pulled her back to face him. For a moment, she saw him grin like an idiot again and he let her back up to strike.

"My… I have never seen anything like this," Douji-sensei mumbled as he stroked his beard. He observed the two fighting in a dance of sorts. It seemed that whenever one would stumble, the other would help them up.

The duo clashed once more and held their swords for a moment. Kaguro was smiling at Jirou all the same, a look of excitement on his face like a child in a candy store. Jirou only glared at him, not sure of what to make of his moves. He probably only wanted to touch her, as most boys do when she becomes herself.

"I think we should stop," Kaguro said quietly, but everyone heard anyways.

"I think so too, Kuroda-sensei," she smiled slightly. His grin became wider before they both backed off and bowed.

"Jirou, I was wrong before," he said as he put away the katana. "You do hold back, but you also lack the endurance and skill. But you have a high sense of aesthetics, which I like," he said as he turned to her, taking her katana. "You can go sit down."

Jirou was at a loss for words. What do you say when a perverted ayakashi impersonates a teacher and tells you that you lack what you've been training to achieve for the last twelve years, and then compliments you on your aesthetics? Who the hell do you think you are? It wasn't her place at this moment. She bowed and retreated beside Renji.

"You did a great job, Jirou," Renji whispered to her with a soft smile.

Jirou peered over at him and forced a smile. He looked into her eyes instead of at her chest. "Thank you, Renji," she told him, ignoring his compliment.

Kaguro quickly checked his watch and turned to Douji-sensei. "I'm sorry but I must get going. I have to attend a meeting at five," he said with a bow.

"Oh, thank you very much for coming, Kuroda-san. You are welcome back any time," Douji-sensei dipped his head. Kaguro bowed once more before leaving the main way.

_Good riddens_, Jirou thought to herself.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

_"__One's friends are that part of the human race with which one can be human,"-__George Santayana_.

The evening sun cast an orange glow upon everything as the students left the dojo. Jirou made her way down the worn path, enjoying the cool air. She heard someone running up behind her and stopped to see who it is.

"Jirou! Mind if I walk you home?" Renji asked her as he came up to her energetically.

"No," she smiled and continued on as he walked beside her.

"Here, let me carry your gear," he said as he took her bag from her hand.

"Thanks Renji," she told him. He did this almost every time his father had to work late, when no one was expecting him at home.

"No problem," he smirked.

As they walked through the field, she took several sidelong glances at him. He would glance at her with his blue eyes through his long, dark hair, and then he'd look away awkwardly, trying to think of something to say. They didn't talk much outside of class or in school. Because of their schedule, they never even passed each other in the same building. But she considered him her best friend no matter how much or how less she knew about him.

"Jirou," he started when they crossed a wooden bridge, nearing the city.

"Yes Renji," she answered, waiting patiently.

"I was wondering… maybe you'd like to, I don't know. Do something tomorrow, after class?" he asked her, trying not to sound anxious.

"That would be great," she smiled at him. She had been on dates with other guys before, but a date with Renji, she actually looked forward to.

She heard him let out a sigh of relief and she could feel his anxiety leaving him. He was always full of energy, and you could tell when something was bothering him.

"Maybe a movie?" he asked as they came closer to the city.

"Maybe."

"Or maybe we can get something to eat?" he brushed his hair back with his hand.

"It doesn't matter to me, Renji," she told him.

"Okay," he sighed, shoving his free hand into his pocket.

It reminded Jirou of Kaguro, they way he'd slouch over with his hands in his pockets. Then she realized how much Renji did look like Kaguro, or Kuroda, or whoever the hell he was.

"Renji, what did you think of that guy earlier? Kuroda?" she asked curiously.

"That creepy guy? I don't know who he is, but I hated the way he looked at you. He stared at you ever since he came in," he spat.

"Really?" Jirou wondered if he was really that readable.

"You don't like him, do you?" he glared at her expectantly.

"What? No! He creeped me out too."

They walked quietly into the suburbs as Renji began kicking an empty pop can along. Some dogs began to bark in response.

"I don't know. There was something weird about him. It's just the way he looks. Something doesn't fit right," he grinned. He was right, Jirou thought. After seeing Kaguro before, she knew that whatever this was, it didn't seem right compared to his demonic form. But for Renji to see through that, that was something.

Jirou felt safer with Renji by her side as they crossed the main drag. They crossed the street where she had encountered Kaguro before, and much to her surprise, he wasn't there. She wanted to tell Renji about it to feel even safer, but he wouldn't believe her. Not after how the conversation about him had went so far.

They soon came to Jirou's house. She noticed her bedroom window opened, but she assumed she had forgotten to close it this morning. Renji handed her her bag with a smile.

"Thanks again for walking me home," she told him.

"It was my pleasure," he scratched the back of his head. Jirou grabbed for the doorknob; it was locked. Her father wasn't home yet.

"Jirou, if you see that Kuroda guy again, don't go near him," Renji warned her, his eyes narrowed.

"Don't worry Renji, I'll steer clear from him," she smiled and reached for her keys in her bag.

"I'll see you tomorrow?" he seemed to not want to leave.

"Yeah," she smiled slightly and unlocked the door.

She opened the door as he turned to leave. She watched him go out the gate and she closed the door. Jirou tossed her bag on the floor and went upstairs to her room to change. She didn't bother to turn on the light in her room because her father wasn't home. She grabbed some clothes out of the dresser and began to unbutton her blouse.

Someone coughed behind her and she stopped at the fourth button.

"Who was your friend?" a voice asked as Jirou whirled around to bump into Kaguro. He wasn't in his handsome form at all, rather his casual kimono and mummy look. Those eyes… She almost wanted to scream from the fright and because she didn't want to see him at all.

"Why do you care?" she asked, glaring back at him. Some light from the street creeped in through the window, shedding sickly yellow light on them both. She caught Kaguro staring down at her breasts hanging out of her shirt, and she quickly redid the buttons and turned away.

"I've been thinking…" he started after a few minutes of silence, the spell broken.

"About what?" she asked as she undid her hair, letting it fall about her face.

"I want it to be a challenge for me when I kill you," he approached her from behind.

"Yeah?" she gave him a quick doubtful look as she tried to take out her earrings.

"So I thought it would be useful to you… after the assessment earlier… that I give you some pointers," he came up to her side at the dresser to try to get her attention.

She tossed her earrings onto the dresser and turned to face him. Who did he think he was to make an offer? She narrowed her eyes at him and dug her nails into the palms of her clenched fists nervously. He didn't smile; his face was almost expressionless, save for those huge wandering eyes. He was dead serious.

"I don't need your help," she hissed at him. His lips twisted into a smile.

"Suit yourself," he pushed past her towards the window, "Just so you know there's something special about you. You're different than other people. Humans like you and I are rare."

Jirou froze in place. What did he mean by that? Humans like her and him? But he was an ayakashi. Could he have been a human once? "Wait, what do you mean? Were you a human too?" she asked as she spun around but he was gone. Her shoulders sagged while she gazed disappointingly at the open window.


End file.
